O'ANNE AND O'DAVE RESTAURANT AND HOTEL RATINGS (* means we rated on Yelp)

How we rate restaurants and hotels:		General total score :
We walk in with zero points and an open mind. If an aspect is not remarkable, it gets zero points. If any aspect is remarkable, it gets one point, either way. Add up the points. Simple.		- = we will not return 0 = We won't return unless we are desperate 1 = We will return if in the area 2 = We will go out of our way to return 3 = We plan entire trips to return

Back to the Travel Index

We used to eat here regularly, the salmon had some problems, the bar was always good, David loves the ribs. Great people watching. Then the salmon started coming without the herbed butter as described on the menu. When we ordered it again, we asked to make sure it had the herbed garlic butter, and was rudely informed it ALWAYS came with the herbed butter. No, not the last three times, thank you very much. I went with my daughter to watch the Super Bowl, we ate there occasionally when David needed a rib fix, most often disappointed, and highly suspect our dinners were being microwaved. (Have you checked out what food qualities are left after being microwaved?)

So, the last time we ate there? July 5, 2014. This was, mark my words, our last trip. We stopped going regularly about a year ago, my husband loves their ribs, so off we go, once again, hoping for the best. When I think of a positive note, I will mention it. Oh yes, the waiter came promptly. And, we came early to avoid the rush. The result?
1. They didn't have my drink, haven't for a long time, used to stock it regularly. Oh well.
2. When they brought me the substitute drink, little did I know until checkout that it was a double. I did not order a double. The fact I did not recognize it was a double speaks loudly. (Can you spell watered down?)
3. The drink, a scotch and water, in 101° weather, came without ice. Hello? Back he goes again.
4. We asked for a spoon so my grandson could eat his Jello. It came very very late, on a plate, and it was an adult soup spoon, a bit bigger than his mouth.
5. My hamburger was cold, the cheese was coagulated. My plate was hot and I am still wondering how they did that.
6. My bacon ordered crispy, was, well, limp at best. Chewy.
7. My husband's ribs were lukewarm.
8. They took my burger back to redo, kudos to the waiter who admitted nuking it was not a good idea.
9. By the time my daughter (who won't admit her chicken was cold) and husband were done eating, I still had not received my burger. We had to vigorously wave down someone in order to cancel the meal, let alone get our ticket.
10. The meal, sans my burger was a whopping $45.00. Are you kidding?? That is when I saw the double scotch and went ballistic. I am sure the manager, let alone some customers, will remember me for a while. I even embarrassed my daughter.

My last fleeting comment? How do the people who obviously go back, tolerate this kind of sub standard service, let alone food? And it wasn't really all the waiter's fault. But the cooks, the barkeep, they all have to take the fall for this one. I do not care how desperate my husband gets for ribs, we will not be back. He can get take out . . .

Ardella's Kitchen - casual diner
77 South Main Street, Willits, A 95490 / 707.459.6577 *

We ate here when it was open years before, delighted to see it open again, and left disappointed. We need to try again, we went during a busy holiday weekend. diner atmosphere, 6 booths, 9 tables, lunch counter seats, loud happy locals, funny menu ("Open almost every day" then later down "Closed on Tuesday"), standard breakfast fare with bizarre omelets, (garlic and cream cheese DOES work), $8 - $12.

It took three tries to get our drinks, the server brought us another tables drinks, took Dave's coke elsewhere, then delivered it with lemon, he asked for no lemon, when she came back to take our breakfast order AGAIN, as I said, "I ordered the Gilded Lily Omelet" I had stepped into the Twilight Zone. OMG, maybe she needs some coffee? The omelet was, well, interesting, Dave's corned beef hash was good.

We have been back since, the food is good, service fair to good, it is reliable, always very busy.

* A nice stop before dinner as most dinner places do not have a bar. The barkeep was very nice, we had some good casual laughs, and a quick stop but it would be a repeat if we were local. I am confident this would be a bustling and noisy, happy place at peek hours. They also have the upstairs restaurant, but we had already spotted the place we wanted to go. Maybe next time!

We were disappointed when Bella Luna finally opened. The buildup was much better than the final result. Designed to be a trendy hot spot, which I think it managed to be because most of Merced was there, but the food suffers. Not all that it was cracked up to be. I make much better mac and cheese, the pastrami was mostly fat.  There are no other good sandwich places in town, but I would still rather eat at home.

Sept 2014: D'Angelo's has closed, Vinnie, the owner of both D'Angelos and Bella Luna, is going to open evening dining here. We have our hopes up, and can't wait to see what happens.

A bit of a surprise. We were in Turlock close to dinner, hungry, friends had ranted about this place so we thought we would give it a try. Five pm, the place is empty, quite a few employees milling about, prepping for the evening. So we have reservations? No . . . looking at the empty tables. I am sorry, we don't have any available tables. Gee ok, How about a table in the bar. She lowered her 3 sets of black lashes and sighed, sat us at an 18" bar table. Oooh, Drambuie, a definite plus.  Salad sounds good but I don't see a plain salad with the usual accoutrements. Salmon was a whopping $35, and that didn't include salad, a side, or a thank you. Cranberries and walnuts, but no standard salad, or even a Chef Salad. We left. We shall try again but only if I am wearing my furs and pearls.

I believe this is our first airport restaurant rating, but it was that good. The corned beef was to die for. If we lived there, we would eat there. Austrian-German food, breakfast, lunch and dinner. They advertise meals under $9.
This spin-off of Chicago's oldest restaurant (which opened in 1898) offers a taste of classic Chicago dining to the thousands of travelers who trek through the airport daily. Located in Terminal 1 (United), the clubby outpost, adorned with Tiffany stained glass and wood trim, cooks breakfast to order and serves up a number of hearty sandwiches, like corned beef and tuna artichoke. It's also not so German that it won't make pizza. The full bar includes the Berghoff's signature beer and root beer."

2015: A second trip years later was designed around being able to stop in Chicago for their corned beef, which was simply not as good as the first trip. Very sad.

Black Bear Diner
1434 V Street, Merced, CA 95340 / 209.383.9600 *

This is the old Marie Callenders. They went out of business, and no surprise. Every time we thought we should try again, we had a horrific meal and swore to never go back again. The karma stayed on the site, it would seem.

We went opening week, it was okay, the potatoes were so spicy my eggs were tasteless. Our second trip was not remarkable, but it still left a bad flavour (excuse the pun) in our mouths. The third trip was the worst, and by far, our last.
There were no customers, should have been our first clue.
Both waitresses had such heavy accents we could not understand them.
The music was so loud we could not hear our waitresses, we asked they turn it down. Nope.
I had to ask for a plate.
My eggs were not only over cooked, they were brown.
The second set of eggs were stone dry on the outside and wet on the inside. I have no idea how they managed that.
The hash was stringy and chewy, it did not get eaten.
The hash browns, well they must be an acquired taste.
Biscuits came without butter, had to ask for it, that means another ten minutes and the biscuit is now cold.
The sausage was delicious except for the caraway seeds were little stones. (They should be crushed before being used)
The servings were large. I think this was the second positive point.
Wait, blackberry jam and comfy seats.

Negative 5 points. A record.

2015 note: My granddaughters had their last California meal here, at their request, and it truly wasn't bad. We had a very amiable waitress who did well with the eight of us, the prices and food were fair, not thrilling.

Aug 2016: There is a sucker born every minute, and we be them today. Our third time was not a charm. Where do I begin? Tuesday, 10:30 am. The girl who sat us (slender young girl, black black long braided hair, heavy eyelashes, full sleeve tattoo on her left arm) sat us so quickly and nonchalantly I didn't understand a word she said. The word disdain fits her attitude quite well. The place mats were basically thrown on the table. She was in far too much of a hurry to get back to the other five employees hanging around gossiping behind the cash register. You can tell they were gossiping by the antics and eye rolling, not to mention their words. Not a good start. I ended up returning the entire breakfast. The eggs were browned, which I specifically asked them not to be, the hash browns emitted water when touched with a fork, and the 'mild' sausage was too spicy to eat. We live off off ginger, cumin, curry, paprika and rolaids, so it takes a lot for me to say something was too spicy to eat. Toast was cold and without butter except the edges were wet and shiny. David's ham was so-so, pancake ok and as he pointed out, how can they ruin egg whites? Josefina's service and willingness to reduce my bill were the highlights. Oh, and they charged me a full beverage price for a cup of hot water.

We walked away disappointed and hungry. It was almost as if we received horrible service because we were not locals? The cafe is bright, shiny, clean, pleasant, sunny window tables and counter seats, a giant moose head that makes you laugh, a good solid menu. Breakfast and lunch. It might be one of the few places in town to eat? It was as if asking for a spoon was an inconvenience, heaven forbid I asked for mayo, too. The hot dog was barely warm, hard and chewy, my fries cold and hard (also uneaten) David's portebello was crunchy, and there were many empty tables so it wasn't rush hour. The root beer float was to die for. Great lunch, she said sarcastically. We won't be back.

We were driving by this shop, and screeched on the brakes. Something said, "Go back!" Organic food, breads, soup, expresso, pastries, pies, how perfect. Yashar truly belongs in the Haight. We can't say enough about this place, if we lived in Plymouth, this would be a main stay. We had tea and soup, East Indian Dahl for David, chicken soup (hand made) for Anne, neither of us could have resisted the freshest rosemary bread.

Food		1
Atmosphere		.5
Service		.5
Prices
Total		2

Great looking place on the side of the road next to the beach, Bones Roadhouse, a good stop for bikers. There is a sign in the parking lot where the handicap usually is, it reads "Reserved for church visitors." My kinda place. Reminiscent of Saint James Infirmary. I told the girl at the bar we had just gotten out of church, parking there is ok? She laughed and said sit anywhere you like. Comfy bar, covered in things to look at. The tongue and groove knotty pine ceiling is covered with dollar bills and business cards. The walls are 90% window. Bright, airy, fun. The menu is sooo big I had to ask her for a copy. Just the appetizers take up one full 8 1/2 x 11 page, single spaced. The food? Oh yum on the burgers, and the thick chips were good and bad, depending on which one you picked up. Best hamburger I can remember. All for a ridiculous $19 for two, including tip. Thank you, Heather! Wish we could say we will be right back.

Food		+1
Atmosphere		+ .5
Service		+ .5
Prices
Total		2

Orchard Supply in Merced actually closed, the nearest is now Turlock. We were headed for the English pub to find it closed, and ate here instead. The room is small, dark and rather loud, 14 tables, lots of shiny wood, well behaved children. They serve beer and wine, the atmosphere is not what I would call relaxed, they want to be a formal place but there isn't enough qualifications to actually be one, a mark in their favor, from my point of view. We aren't comfy with stuffy places, but nice and quiet is good, too. 12 appetizers, soup and salad comes with dinner, steaks, pork chops, prime rib, lamb, chicken, burgers, calamari, shrimp, several fish dishes including scallone (yesss) and Barefoot Moscato, $5 for a glass or $9 for a bottle. The prices range from $9 for a burger to $30 for the rack of lamb. Service with Nicole was close to impeccable, the minestrone had an interesting smoke flavor to it (I almost licked the bowl) and the French Bread was phenomenal. I think we had to ask for butter, the plastic dishes with the bread were a bit of a surprise, the blue cheese is a reason alone to return. The quantity of food was atrocious, we had plenty of left overs. A $56 bill was the end of a close to perfect meal.

How did I miss rating this restaurant for so long? We were there again last night, it's only bad point is that it is an hour away from our house. Small, quiet, intimate, a three wall booths, four center booths, a dozen or more tables, western decor, professional service, always, always full. Then you get to the food. After a year of my light moaning and bringing my own bottle, they carry my Moscato wine, happy happy. I always have scallone. For you who know me or follow me, you know how this delectable morsel has slipped through our fingers over and over. This one appears to be a permanent fixture, thank God. David varies between ribs, prime rib, and their gigantic, heavenly hamburger. All the girls are delightful and fun.

For some reason this has been here for seven years and we have never tried it. Maybe because we only hit Lowe's AFTER breakfast? When you first walk in, your are struck but it's cleanliness and tasteful decorations, albeit the flake flowers, which just look downright pretty. Just under twenty booths, three tables for eight, pink walls, windows all the way around with pink shades, white lattice trimmed in burgundy. Maybe I loved it because of the colours, but we were impressed. The clientele is impressive as well, let me leave it at that. We were seated with a minute, so was everyone else who entered during our stay, 11 am. Service was fast, the food was faster. The eggs were quite browned (sorry, its changes the taste to horrid) but Sally didn't bat an eye AND my fresh, perfectly cooked eggs were delivered before I could say boo. The bacon was PERFECT, and my preference of done is quite hard to do. David's all meat omelet was steaming hot and delicious. If I had to find a complaint, I would say I was a bit surprised to be charged for the hot water for my tea bag, and $2.19 at that. We WILL be back. We have found another rare breakfast spot. Oh, and the price? Outside the tea bag. very good.

That rare breakfast place quickly lost it's luster. The second trip,  it took forever to get tea, but we were seated immediately as usual. David orders egg whites and gets full eggs. My eggs are brown, the bacon fatty. They did get it right a second time around, but I do get tired of everyone eating without me. 

The next trip was worse.  I am informed they can't do my bacon crisp.  The return of my browned eggs (for the third time, this seems to be the way they cook eggs????) is frowned upon, (it took us a long time for her to understand why I would want to return my eggs) and the hash browns are now stone cold. David's omelet was not going to be one of his regular orders. VERY disappointed. We may have to find another place. Again

I am not sure we would return if we had to. We were told at the front desk they had turkey noodle soup, just what we needed for our colds. When we were seated, it came to light they ran out of it and now had vegetable, but it was in tomato base. Having an ulcer means no tomato dishes. When I returned the soup, I think the waitress's attitude went from bad to much worse. Asking for anything else after that felt like we were imposing on her. The store does have some great old style candy, but I believe I can order those on line without the attitude. Such a shame, most of the reviews are good or better. (The food was basic, nothing special in any way.)

The cream of zucchini soup was incredible, but the service and food declined steadily until we did not go anymore. The last time we went, the dinner plate was so hot I actually received a burn from it. Such a shame. We have been back since, found it to be a bit pricey for a family dinner.

Great expectations! The menu looked like an old fashioned frosty (yes!!!!) the wait was considerable (good food is always worth the wait) the shakes to die for (butterscotch and blackberry), but the tuna melt tasted funny. Dissecting it did not help and I basically left hungry, eating only the yummy garlic fries. If we lived locally, we would be more than willing to give it another try. It is the only place near by, too.

This is more like it. Recommended by Yashar at the Blue Blinds Bakery, this was exactly what we have been looking for. Superb food, extensive and delicious menu, full bar, low light table lamps, a view if you choose, reserved waiters. We ate watching the mist roll in, Lobster Rangoon, crab cakes, chicken marsala. Kobe burger was also on the menu, along with salmons, shrimps, scrod, tuna, sea bass, and so much more. David remarked it was the first time he can remember being offered the choice of two non-alcoholic beers. The bill was higher end, but worth every penny.

A tiny place, a thin, long store front place, Wizard of Oz decor, 5 side booths, center tables, 36 people max. It filled up while we were there, an obviously favorite local place. Good breakfast menu, delightful choices, I had one of many omelets, David had sausage and eggs and a pancake. The menu is highly entertaining, and advises to try their pancake before adding syrup. David ate the entire thing. The only objections were the skinny hard booth seats, they charge $2.50 for a syrup serving (who does this?), and the hollandaise sause, also $4.00, was blah blah. The food was very good, service was excellent, generally the prices were a tad steep, but you did get plenty of food. Otherwise, we would be regulars and bring our own syrup, if needed.

This was a disappointment, perhaps because we waited so long for Lupita to reopen, and perhaps because they had just opened, but it was a big gulp to try and return. The menu is now Steakhouse Family Dining, includes steak, salmon, pastas, salads, soups, scampi, burgers, pork chops, ribs, prime rib, four child entrees. That leaves me with salmon and salmon. No chicken. There is still a full bar but they don't carry Drambuie anymore. Minus one point. They bring bread but waving down a waitress to get butter took a while. Minus two points. The potatoes were not done at all, the salmon was raw the first time, and raw the second time they brought it, but it was free. Minus four points. I left hungry, but my meal was free. On the other hand, David's rib-eye was excellent, the prices were good, and the salad, if you don't mind all one lettuce, was good, the bleu was excellent. They ended up with minus one point.

The second trip was better, but the potatoes were still cold, no Drambuie, but my salmon was cooked. Wish they would add chicken dishes!!

We had never been to a Friendly's before, appears to be a good family standard restaurant. Large, open, extremely clean kitchen. Cheerful, tables and booths, bright colours, pleasant. Wide menu, reasonable prices. We went twice, once for breakfast, once for lunch and delicious burgers. Wish we had one in our neck of the woods as they are a good step above Denny's.

Second visit, maybe we are spoiled. Despite the rating of "Second cleanest" (who IS the first??) and the cheery service, the food is okay. Not exciting. Having trouble with my eggs lately. Everyone seems to burn them or cook them so fast and high they resemble rubber. What is surprising and pleasing is the $48 bill for seven breakfasts.

The only fast food we do (well, besides Taco Bell). Been there for years, praying it will be there for many more years. Yum on the burgers, root beer, fries, zucchini, mushrooms, hotdogs, pastrami. Yum yum fast food.

2017 Note: The food was absolutely horrible, a true rarity and my stomach has not allowed me to return. Sad.

I am sure that if you are a local and a regular, you would love this place. Maybe the cashier would treat you with a better attitude as well. We came extremely close to walking out without picking up our drinks. We were treated shabbily at best, I am guessing because we did not know the tea would be served on the left instead of the right of him? I wanted to ask the cashier what I could have possibly done wrong (I had not said one word besides "this tea please," pointing to a tea box) but there was a long line behind me. I was actually embarrassed.

Howard's Station Cafe is trendy. Yuppie. Most people had laptops and organic, designer coffees. We just wanted a decent breakfast that did not include tofu. Selecting our meals made me feel we were deciding from the loudly proclaimed "Not so Healthy" section of the menu. "Absolutely no substitutions" speaks for itself. They do have an extensive menu, 17 tables, a wood wall atmosphere in an old, quaint building that is just dark enough to relax in. David had corned beef hash and whites after a slight dispute on how whites were to be cooked, I had the simple delight, eggs, potatoes and a biscuit. The presentation was so well done I had to take a photo. Then I took a hold of my honey for my tea and almost had to use the restroom to get it off my hands. Thank goodness for Landon's baby wipes in my purse. The potatoes were quite good, but my eggs had been chopped up into three million tiny pieces. Interesting. The heart shaped biscuit was hard, and a disappointment. About $30. Yikes

We had received recommendations from two people, and felt this was a safe place to go. The appearance is good, looking like we might have been on the wharf in San Francisco in style. The menu was what we expected, varied selections of fish and beef, pork and pasta, a full bar, prices were reasonable and slightly upscale. Just what we were looking for. The white table cloths, black and white dressed waiters looked good. However, you could stump the waitress easily by interrupting her spiel with questions, like what is salmon oscar? The salad dressing was nondescript cream with bleu cheese chunks, the baked potato came wrapped in foil, cafeteria style, the sour cream in a tiny, processed container was a real surprise. Opening the potato to find it completely spoiled and brown did little to whet my appetite. It was replaced but by then I did not want to eat much more of the dry salmon, David wasn't crazy about his dish. If we lived there, we would avoid returning.

There are only a few places whose authentic Mexican food stands out and this is one of them. Armondo was extremely pleasant and the service was impeccable. The green sauce is a tad hot but fantastic. Do be warned, if you order the super burrito, it is enough to feed two people, unless you are Tom. In Willits, you can spend your entire meal saying hi to friends who come in and out.

Besides sporting a wonderful waitress, Deisy, they offer every Mexican meal you can think of, and fish n chips, chicken strips, BLT, soups, salads and burgers. It's bright and airy, but could use some window shades in the heat of day. 6 booths, 7 tables plus bar seating. Good guacamole, beans are different, dark and heavy, green sauce is a tad blah, ditto on the ranchero sauce. $7 to $16.

We love the place in San Jose, and were in this neighborhood on our travels. They started out slow, slow, slow, but it ended up better than feared. Blue wood decor, store front appearance, 7 booths and 13 tables. The same basic menu as the Monterey Highway place, David had chicken fried steak, my bacon was perfection but the eggs were dry. Way too much food and blackberry jam!!

Visit #3, thinking this might be our last stop, we will be returning to the SJ mother store. The service is as slow as mud, getting extras (like cream or S&P) takes some effort, the eggs are cooked way too fast and high. I had eggs and potatoes, David a sausage steak and coffee. I brought the bill up to the cashier, complained about David's whites weren't, and he took my $37.98 bill and gave me a 20% discount, dropping the bill to $27.07. I am thinking, if I brought my own tea, my eggs were $8.99, what cost $28.99??

Absolutely yum. I posted on Facebook a picture of my plate before I licked it clean. Standard Mexican faire, good prices, sunny clean place.

Thank goodness we saw them on the right coming up to NC. Returned afraid June 2017 as the great little places seem to go downhill when they move to a new, larger location. This is an exception. Still plate licking delicious. Now 25+ tables, still excellent service, the boys truly bustle. The guac is too lemony for me, but all traces of the relleno was gone from my plate.

The menu is standard, the food and service is good. It reminds you of an old fashioned Woolworth's counter in a train diner, except everything was super shiny and clean. What made this eatery so special was Judy. When David asked her for a little bit of Tabasco, that is precisely what she brought. I think it took her a while to find the bottle with just a dab in it, but it set the entire table to rolling and it only got worse from there. We wanted to take her home but she said, "No." Burgers, chicken Gumbo soup, ham and Swiss sandwich, turkey BLT club, mozzarella cheese omelet, tomato cheese and bacon sandwich, all very good and very reasonably priced.

Second trip in 2015, I LOVED their breakfast potatoes, tea was warm, but the price for six good breakfasts was silly, only $49. And Tink's bacon was perfect. Hard to find someone who can cook bacon like that. We returned for lunch the day we left, equally fantastic meal, silly price, lovely, lovely service from Robin.

How could I have missed rating this place all these years. Headed to Fresno? Two mandatory stops: Piemontes and Meze's. And they are right next door to each other in the Tower District. The biggest problem is do we eat at Piemonte's and bring home Meze's, or the other way around? The falafel and humus, gyros, oh yum.

Dinner was, well, disappointing. The friendly barmaid, Dani, had braces and made me miss my daughter. This is a typical seashore bar restaurant, wide windows, white tablecloths, etc. Chicken, New York steak, some seafood, pasta, but no salmon. The bread was cold and hard, not a good start. When the busboy brought water with lemon I asked for water without lemon (I am allergic to citrus) and he was extremely unhappy about it. We settled on crab cakes (two small one each) and a crab louie salad. Both were good, but certainly not worth a whopping $150??? Wish I had had access to a computer to read the reviews first. Oh well, live and learn.

We found this place wandering around, checked out the menu, kept walking, but returned when the idea of Greek food just wouldn't go away. The waiters said they were glad we returned, and we took a table upstairs in the loft. A small place, a narrow but long space, light beige everywhere including the cloth napkins, a bustling place, tables and stand up bar downstairs, 12ish tables in the loft. The menu includes "small plates" and dinners, an extensive wine list and beer, and an excellent ginger beer. Octopus, mussels, prawns, and dishes I can't begin to pronounce. Gyros, salmon, pork chops were one of the specials. $6-$27
Decisions were tough. We started with the Soutzoukakia (baked meatballs in tomato herbs sauce with orzo), horiatiki (salad, tomatoes, cucumbers, bell peppers, red onions, olives, feta with a perfect dressing), tzatziki (pita bread topped with deliciousness), salmon with a white wine sauce with capers and mashed potatoes, and pork chops that were cut with a fork with potatoes. Our waiter, Peter (great sense of humor, extremely attentive and personable) assured me since we were alone in the loft, it would be alright if I licked my plate. We left so full we could hardly move, but our taste buds purred the rest of the night.
I would like the salmon and wine sauce again, please.

This meal came very close to ruining the weekend. The atmosphere is typical wharf full window walls and formica tabletops. The food was horrific, the service was appalling. We were handed bread by our waitress, and then completely ignored for twenty one minutes. The crab cakes were hard with the prominent taste being the over deep fried crust and David's shrimp were tough. While the menu was extensive, prices range from $12.95 to $25.95, the light is too low, and we honestly thought the useless vegies were the best part of the meal. We were there on a Saturday night at 8 pm, and this was the only open restaurant on the wharf, we were one of two tables! The manager was far more interested in a baby she was holding than the satisfaction of her clientele. Very sad. Be sure to miss this one. Dinner was $54.

The ratings on this place were fair to good, so we were surprised. There is a bar side and a restaurant side, both we completely empty for a Sunday night. One large, open room with many tables, wood walls that would echo horribly if it were busy, and one blonde, friendly waitress. The menu I was handed was covered in goo, bad start. We were not feeling up to par, asked how was the lasagna (no one is going to tell you its horrible) but she went off on a description of the cottage cheese texture of lasagna that made her ill in more detail than anyone would ever want to hear. We used the excuse they did not have our brand of drink to leave, and she had absolutely no clue.

I could not find them on Yelp in 2013. Wonder why?

A classic steakhouse, noisy wood atmosphere, full bar, always busy, good service, love their bloomin' onion. Someone wrote it was an amusement park for your taste buds. LOL!! We will go out of our way to eat here. The one negative? It's an hour away.

Chip recommended this place and we will be indebted to him forever, except for one small detail; we don't have this chain in California. What a shame. The tees say it, "Not a chain . . just a few good restaurants run by family and friends." Well, Linda was family. Her attitude showed it. She took immaculate care of us for three mornings, I had to regretfully send the coupons she gave us for their delicious cornbread back to Chip who lives in the area. If you visit Plymouth or surrounding areas, I encourage a visit. Light wood, country style decor, booths and tables, wide, wondrous menu, excellent food, great prices. Open for breakfast and lunch only.

Don't let the 'cafe' title fool you. A very elegant place, full bar and distinct menu. Bartender Steve has saved us from the cold winds on more than one occasion.

So excited, we have found another three star restaurant, the highest rating we have ever found. This is a definite three plus place. (The service was good, what you would expect. No point for service is not a bad thing. )

It is small, homey, cozy, the decor could be a tiny tucked-in-a-wedge San Francisco cafe. The accents of the server makes me think she was an owner? The food is nothing short of simply delicious. A very wide variety of food including gyros, dolma's, omelets, baklava, sandwiches, melts, and that's just the breakfast and lunch menu. Eleven tables with a full bar in the room next door, and those tables were full as well. We ate very well for twenty dollars, but you can spend up to $13 per plate.

I had breakfast, David had lunch, we left so full we could barely walk. I have decided if your fork can't decide which item to eat next, I am in heaven.

When you walk in, you might think you have died and gone to heaven. No matter why we are in Fresno, we stop here to pick up meata ballas, sausa and raveeoolees. At lunch time, the small place is packed to the brim with sandwich orders, the cheese display (old fashioned meat counter style) is to die for, let alone the selection of meats. An absolute "must" stop. (The pictures on their website will get you hungry!!)

A small but standard Red Lobster. We must have gone when it was not busy as we were seated immediately. As always, unforgettable biscuits, delicious food, good service.

We ended up here rather unexpectedly, and I was cautious after a bad trip to another RR further north. Jena was eating her last meal before braces, and she wanted a burger. Bottom line on the food is that it was good, but we would not drive the thirty miles just for the food. Chili burger, guac burger and the Black and Bleu. I would not pay $14 for that Black and Bleu again either. It's a good burger, just not worth $14, AND it's just a burger! The bartender needs to learn Glenlivet and water does not mean Glenlivet and soda. And the noise? Oh my Lordie, that was loud. The food was slow, we were there two hours but we came at rush hour. Ok, so now we get to the good part. The ladies. Incredible job amongst the noise and chaos. We wanted to take Mary Anne and Natalie home but their shifts weren't over. Thank you, ladies, for a VERY fun evening. Landon says thank you for the car race, his carrots and balloon, too.

A true delight. Short comfy booths, quiet atmosphere, excellent service. Crab cakes were perfect, the salad was delicious with spiced beets and a smooth bleu, my salmon was eaten down to the last flake, David's chicken marsala was just right. No bar, but everything else made this a definite Next Trip stop. $116. My photos of their doors are fun - "The Restaurant" on the outside and "The Rest of the World" on the inside.

Everything said we were in for a treat; great atmosphere, the lights are low in the crowded room, full of twenty odd tables, the music is a teensy bit loud, and we took one of the two open tables. I would have laughed to see "Vinnie Barbarino ate here" on the bathroom wall. Almost full bar (which means they don't have Drambuie but they carry Glenlivet or Glenfiddich and David's beer) and a fairly standard menu including steaks, salmon, calamari, cioppino, $16-$27. I finally settled on the lasagna, David ordered the veal marsala. The salad was surprisingly plain lettuce with a good, thick bleu dressing,

Then dinner arrived. What a joy. Each bite had our taste buds doing cartwheels and somersaults. David could cut his meat with his fork, unfortunately the blend of spices remains a mystery. The lasagna was just delicious, and I almost devoured the entire serving, not easy for me.

What really made the meal a delight, besides the food, was the service. Impeccable. Thank you, Raoul, for the detail, the attention, the concern and care. (And the complimentary Marsala, we are now searching everywhere for that brand!)

If we lived in the area, this would be a standard for us.

Food		+1
Atmosphere		+1
Service		+1
Prices
Total		3

In a word, yum. Greeted like old friends (hubby is an old friend) and the food was simply delicious. Try the basil chicken or the garlic vegies. Spring rolls and satay are super, don't miss the cucumber carrot sauce, I can't wait to return and try the rest of the menu. You know, I think we should go tonight. Now.

You can always tell the best food by where the locals go. Standard breakfasts (this is a good thing), the eggs are cooked in butter, the biscuits are a bit heavy, but it's still a definite repeat location, and if we lived there, we would be regulars.

The salad bar is great, the salmon stuffed with crab is no longer available. Bummer.  I wish they had a one trip salad bar for a tad less than the whopping $11. Yikes. So, I tried the plank salmon tonight.  

Every time I write anything even slightly negative I think about the guy on Yelp who wrote me and asked why I bother to go out? Well, because we are hungry, we rate restaurants  and like to find good places, which we do. Then he asked me why I didn't give the places a chance to fix the meal. D.B., this review is for you. 

If I return the salmon because it is full of fat and slimy and under cooked, and I wait for twenty minutes for the replacement salmon and now my husband is done eating, the waitress brings me the new salmon and says to check it to see if it is alright, DO NOT ASSUME it was cooked right the second time. COME BACK to find out the second salmon is even worse, and much thinner and smaller a portion than the first for $14. I don't think so. Salmon should be moist and flaky, not runny and slimy. I did not even take it home for the cats. I tried to give them a fourteenth try and they failed. Again. Back to the salad bar for me. It works.

Down in the cellar lies a dark, candle lit, bustling, cool tavern style restaurant. The menu is varied and excellent, full bar, servers are in wench costumes, there is almost always a waiting line and worth the wait. You can easily spend the waiting time in the store upstairs. All the girls are quite friendly, we ate there regularly on our first trip, a meal for six was just over a hundred dollars. The upstairs dining rooms, the Alexander Dobbin Dining Rooms, (reservations required) are equally delightful.

Hot and cold sandwiches of all kinds, outstanding soups, cheese plate, burgers, lovely sides.

Our favorite place in Twain Harte, we eat here when we are at the cabin. Wonderful portions, excellent selection, good prices and always delightful waitresses, <waving at Janet.>  Their handmade sausage is to die for. Good home cooking away from home.

We saw a decline in the food, bacon is hard to get well done, eggs are dry, then Janet is gone. We head to Woods creek now.

So glad this is open again!! A small, cozy, cheery, 50's Sambo's style, a long wall of six roomy booths and the counter with bright new red and chrome soda counter stools. Standard breakfast and lunch, reliable, delicious. Prices are a tad higher than they were before, but well worth the good food. A standard stop for us if we are gypsying in that direction.

Closed again. Sigh . . .

We like to walk in, sniff, walk out and walk in again. The waiters (Keith and Matt) are very personable, they treat you like family, Parm cooks like he is cooking for family, and the food is to die for. What more can one ask for? And, it is reliable. Love it. Oh oh, the Pineapple chicken is new and to die for!!! Thank you, Keith!!! One of our favorite servers in Merced.

We were talking to Parm about how many years we have been eating at his delightful establishment, and were bewildered to realize how quickly fourteen years had passed. It doesn't get any better than that.

We arrived at 7, and left at 8:30, way too long a visit, way too long a wait form beginning to end. The meal was fair to poor, the price was good ($40), but we are wondering if we will return. Jena liked her salmon and sweet potato, my potato was stone cold but the salad was good, ditto with the dressing. Salads generally are safe, it takes a really bad place to ruin a salad. The sauteed onions weren't cooked well, the sauteed mushrooms were good but a tad salty. Dave's Roadkill was overcooked, and he ordered no cheese, and got cheese, on a likewise cold potato. Michelle was not a bad waitress at all, hopefully the chefs dropped the ball. The butter for the rolls is to die for, by the way. AND, they have blooming onions.

We are searching for places to eat while we live in Mi-Wuk and the pickins are pretty slim. So we head down to Jamestown and discover a gold mine. Their ratings were good and bad, but everyone has a bad night. We left so full and happy and will return over and over. Again, if you are full and can't stop eating because the food is so good, OR, your fork can't decide which item you want a bite of next? Heaven.

Old time saloon appearance, bless their hearts since it has only burnt five times since 1862. They have a good selection of appetizers, nine beef choices, 10 fish, six chicken, soups and salads, four pastas, seven child items, beef stroganoff, marsala, prawns, salmon, the list goes on and on. The handmade bleu salad dressing is incredible, the salmon done to perfection, David's New York was perfect. Plus, Drambuie and one of the best Bloody Mary's David has ever had. Olivia was nothing short of wonderful, we read all about the history while we ate, and left with a $71 bill, much less that the equivalent anywhere else. Entrées run from $11 to $22. Oh, and the vegetables? OMG.

A second trip, Esther was serving, equally grand. Think we will pass on the cheese dip again, but the vegies were licked up off the plate. Soup, salad, onions and mushrooms? Heavenly. Burgers are to die for.

This is the place that makes up for all the crappy meals. Three digits phone number away from another fantastic restaurant? It must be a sign. Or, it's a small town. I prefer to believe the former. We have lost so many of our three star restaurants and need some new ones. Thank goodness for Wood's Creek. It's only negative point was because it is so far away from our Merced house.

All Things Cow. Black and white cow motif everywhere, and I do mean everywhere. It will take you abut four meals to see it all. Very friendly staff, I have never seen one of them in even a semi bad mood. 15 cheerful tables, bustling atmosphere, and a chalkboard waiting list where you add your own name. That speaks for itself. Sixteen omelet dishes and other wonderful standard faire. Food is served promptly and hot! Practical paper towel roll on the table. I get the chili relleno omelet. I want to try all the other dishes, but that would mean I would not get to eat my chili relleno omelet! Their home fried potatoes are amazing. You can spend between $6 and $10 for a meal.

I ventured out of my box and ordered a meatloaf sandwich. Across the entire place Angie yells at Denise, "WHAT did she order?" Love those girls.

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